


All That We Leave Behind

by sleepismyfriend



Category: Doctor Who (1963), Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-07
Updated: 2011-08-07
Packaged: 2017-10-22 07:56:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/235850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleepismyfriend/pseuds/sleepismyfriend
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After leaving the war behind, the Doctor finds himself on Earth in 2212.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All That We Leave Behind

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tempestas_inu](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=tempestas_inu).



> Prompt was Nine, Ten, or Eleven finding Susan Foreman. This fic does not follow events of the Big Finish audio, An Earthly Child, but does follow events of DW: The Dalek Invasion of Earth.

After several sputters and a large whirl, the TARDIS completed the first full dematerialization since leaving Gallifrey and the war behind. Where he landed wasn't important, the Doctor thought, circling the console. No, he wanted to make sure the set of circuits were in proper working order before he went any further down his massive list of repairs.

Gallifrey and the war were safely confined within the Time Lock now, and the Doctor preferred it that way. He had never been more angry and disappointed with his people. They failed to understand that resurrecting Rassilon and becoming non-corporeal beings wasn't the saving grace from the Daleks they were hoping for. It was merely the last straw in a losing war across the cosmos.

The Doctor leaned across the TARDIS console to flip a switch, only to have said switch break off in his hand. Sighing, he tossed the switch down and stepped back. This console, like the cravat and wide expanse of books, didn't belong to him. It belonged to the Edwardian gentleman he was before, and the sooner he could restore the decorative systems, the better. All the clutter was giving him a headache.

As he resumed his work, the Doctor ignored the large knock on his outer doors. However, once they repeated themselves several times, he looked towards the door, and then to his screen. The cracked power couplings had killed the inner monitors, and so the Doctor strode across the console room. He pulled one of the TARDIS doors open to see a young human boy with dark hair and dark eyes staring up at him.

"Are you the Doctor?"

"Who's askin?" He was still getting used to his new accent, but had already perfected his scowl. He leaned against the TARDIS entrance as the boy swallowed the lump in his throat.

"Someone recognized your blue box, sir," he replied, pointing.

"What, this blue box?" The Doctor stepped outside, closing the door behind him as he too pointed. He then crossed his arms. "Of course someone recognized it. It's my ship. Known across the stars as the TARDIS. Now, tell me who sent you?"

At the sudden sharp tone, the boy's expression grew frightened. He turned, and ran off. The Doctor sighed, and forced himself to run after the boy.

From the local flora, fauna, and crumbling city around him, the Doctor guessed he was on Earth, though he knew it was much later than the latter part of the 20th century he was accustomed to. He finally caught up to the boy as the boy turned to look back at him, then ran into a dense area of trees. He could only follow, and hope the boy was leading him somewhere.

The leafy trees ended, not being as dense as the Doctor predicted. He found himself standing on a sidewalk with a T intersection. There were rows of houses on each side of him, and the houses were in better condition here than where the TARDIS was parked.

A dark green SUV pulled up in front of him, the window rolled down so the driver could greet him.

"Hello Spaceman," she said, her long red hair dangling around her shoulders as she motioned with her head to the seat next to her. The boy from earlier was behind her in the backseat, his face leaning against the window and staring at the Doctor. The Doctor didn't respond, trying to piece things together. "Look, I haven't got all day. If you don't want to get in, turn around and go back to the TARDIS. I've waited long enough."

The Doctor complied by coming around the bonnet and getting in the passenger side. The SUV sped off down the street.

"You know me," the Doctor said. The woman nodded, both hands gripping the wheel. It's obvious she's focusing on the road much more than she needed to, considering they're alone on weakened residential roads.

"In a manner of speaking," she replied, her eyes noticing the sporadic yellow hue of his skin. "I see you're not done cooking yet either."

"What's it to you?" The Doctor felt very defensive. The majority of regeneration energy had tapered off while the TARDIS floated in the Vortex, but there were still moments where he felt his dendrites burning and knew his regeneration wasn't finished.

"Do you seriously not recognize me?" The woman waited before tapping her temple, and the Doctor shook his head. He hadn't the foggiest idea who this human was. The boy in the backseat leaned his head forward between the Doctor and the woman.

"Nope," the Doctor replied.

"Splendid," she sighed, re-gripping the wheel. "And here I thought you couldn't be anymore Dumbo. Ethan, sit back."

Ethan did as he was told. The Doctor looked out the window at the building and trees whizzing by, and knew he had seen these crumbling deserted conditions across a million worlds. He always tried to avoid seeing Earth this way though, for Earth was by far his favourite.

"So, what year is this?" The Doctor asked. "Or rather, what century?"

"2212," the woman replied.

"That would mean the Daleks tried to invade what, fifty years ago?" The Doctor now remembered when he had seen these conditions before, and decided never to return.

"Forty-eight," the woman said. "And I wouldn't know the exact details. I wasn't here then."

"You certainly look old enough."

"Oi, Dumbo, it's not my age you need to concern yourself with. Just how long were you that pinstriped twig, hmm? You must be well over fifteen hundred by now or something."

"I should have known better than to climb into some heap with a raving lunatic who thinks she knows my age. I'll thank you to keep your predictions to yourself."

"I'm not raving." Anger seeped into the woman's voice, and the Doctor was pleased. It had been a long time since he had found anyone so willing to argue with him. "And you're one to talk about lunatics after some of the companions you've had. Blimey—"

"Are we there yet?" Ethan's head once again popped up between them, his voice whining. "I'm hungry."

"Almost," the woman replied. Ethan sighed, and there was silence the rest of the way as the woman drove past an opened iron gate and turned right down a residential street. Several houses passed before she pulled into a drive.

The woman killed the engine and got out to open Ethan's door. The ten year old went running towards the house as the woman made her way to the boot of the SUV.

As the Doctor got out, his eyes went to the house. In normal conditions, the large brick house would have been considered very stately, but here, it appeared out of the ordinary amongst the rest of the city. Things hadn't completely added up yet.

The woman moved forward past him, a large paper bag in her hands only to stop and turn to look at him. He slammed his car door and went walking towards her. They both entered the house.

"Donna—" It was as soon as they had entered the nicely decorated foyer that the Doctor heard an elderly woman's voice come down the stairs, source unknown. He froze, recognizing the voice even without blinking as his hearts lurched. "Donna, are you back?"

"Yes, and I've brought a bit of company," Donna shouted up the stairs, noticing the sudden fear and terror that crossed the Doctor's features. Her voice softened as she motioned with her head. "Go on, Spaceman. I'll be there in a minute."

When the Doctor reached the top of the stairs, he turned at the sound of several coughs. He then walked down the hall towards the source.

An older woman, dark hair streaked with grey and of shorter height, traced the length of her bed until she came to the bedpost. Her pace was slow, but her eyes remained in one direction as she sat down on a trunk at the foot of her bed. She sat with perfect posture, her hands together in her lap.

"Donna, after all these years, have you finally learned to change your stride?" Her voice cracked as she smiled, an obvious sign of weakness. The Doctor approached her, dropping to one knee once he was close enough. He could see the woman's eyes didn't focus on any one thing, but the smile remained on her face.

The Doctor mentally charted all the things he could say, but knew that sometimes the simpler things merely worked better. His voice was much different than any of his other previous incarnations, and he wasn't sure liked it himself.

"Hello Susan," he said, waiting for the smile on Susan's face to fade. However, something struck a chord with her, and her smile changed. It widened and became more genuine as her eyes glossed over.

"Hello Grandfather," she replied, and the Doctor's hearts lurched once more. "You came back."

"I said I would."

"Yes, you did. I just didn't think—" Her hands lifted from her lap, but stopped when they didn't know where to go. The Doctor brought them to his cheeks, allowing Susan to feel the planes of this new face. "You're so different—"

"But you can't see me, can you?" he asked. Susan nodded.

"About five years ago, there was a chemical accident. David and I—" She didn't finish her thought as her smile weakened. "Well, I lost everything."

"I'm sorry."

"Oh Grandfather." Susan held his cheeks and leaned forward to kiss his forehead. "What's past is past. No use in crying about it. What I lack in sight I certainly make up for in other much more important ways. Tell me why you're here."

"There was a war—"

"I know." Susan sighed. "I received my call from Gallifrey just before the accident. Fortunately for me, they took my refusal a little better than I thought they would."

Susan could feel the Doctor pull away as he stood up. "Did you have anything to do with that? Because the entire thing felt strange, and I've always been curious."

"I made a deal," the Doctor replied, his emotions beginning to bubble within him and threaten to explode. He could remember the conversation about Susan with Romana in her office, and how adamant he was that she was to be left alone. "To keep you out of the war and safe."

"We lost the war, didn't we?" Susan asked, and the Doctor started to answer when he heard Donna's footsteps coming down the hall. He looked over his shoulder once she appeared in the doorway, and instantly became defensive.

"Gallifrey is gone." He crossed his arms to defend himself if need be. "You and I are all that's left of the Time Lords."

He ignored Donna clearing her throat. "The TARDIS is a mess. I was fixing the dematerialization circuits when the boy knocked on my door."

"The boy?" Susan asked.

"I sent Ethan to ask after the Doctor while I finished getting supplies," Donna replied.

"My youngest grandson can be quite a handful. Helpful, but still a handful," Susan smiled. "Not entirely unlike you, Grandfather."

The Doctor found himself at a loss for words. An unexpected family reunion wasn't something he ever thought was possible, and yet here it was, staring him in the face.

"I should get back. There's no telling what's out there near my TARDIS. The city doesn't look any better now than before."

"Unfortunately, that much is true," Susan replied. "Despite all our efforts, the rebuilding process has slowed due to faction rivalry. I can't tell you how much help Donna has been trying to sort that mess out."

"Ahh, yes, the elephant in the room." The Doctor eyed Donna. "Donna."

"Don't even," Donna said, holding up her finger.

"She knows me, but I don't know her. So, logic would dictate I haven't met her yet. My future, your past," the Doctor said, studying Donna. "We can do this one of two ways. You can either tell me your story so I'll remember it when the time comes, or not tell me the story in case the spoilers destroy the natural timeline. Your choice."

"My name's Donna Noble." Donna took a step forward. "I'm originally from the late 20th century."

"Okay, and you have the ability to time-travel?"

"Not anymore," Donna sighed. "My Vortex manipulator broke when I arrived here. Haven't been able to repair it since."

"Vortex manipulator? I think I'm more confused than I was before. You a Time Agent?" The Doctor saw Donna look to Susan as if to exchange glances, but due to Susan's eyesight, the motion was for naught.

"Donna's one of us, Grandfather. You'd see it if you looked closely enough," Susan said.

"I'm not sure I want to be that close." The Doctor made a face.

"Grandfather—" Susan's commanding tone was a warning as she stood, not accepting his negativity as she placed her hands on her hips. "Because of you, Donna's been gifted with one of the most powerful minds in the universe. Someday, you'll realize the how and why. But for now, take her back to the TARDIS. She'll help you fix whatever you need so that you can be on your way again."

"What about you?"

"Obviously, I can't help with the repairs. We'll talk once you return." The Doctor and Donna found themselves unable to refuse her commands. They walked down the hall, down the stairs, and out the front door.

"Looks like your granddaughter called you out, Spaceman," Donna said, tilting her head. "Susan Campbell-1, Grumpy Doctor-0."

"Really, annoying Earth girl? Hadn't noticed." Climbing into the SUV, the Doctor slammed the door as Donna smirked and started the engine.


End file.
